Audio America Shows Drew 200-Plus

Audio America in October held a pair of dealer events in its territory, hosting day-long events in Jupiter, Fla. on the 18th and Marietta, Ga., a week later on the 25th. The events drew more than 200 attendees each from across the distributor's territory in the Southeast, as well as 40 vendors, CEO Jonathan Elster said in an interview.

"The positive thing is that our dealers are optimistic," Elster said. "In years past i've been to shows where it wasn't as positive. Customers are seeing more opportunities, and adding more value-added services, instead of just selling boxes."

Elster added that he was happy with the turnout.

As they perused the floor, dealer attendees were positive about several categories, including automation, including Nest and Dropbox- what Elster called "the next group of companies"- as well as Lutron's Caseta lighting offerings. Security products, including those from Yale Locks, drew interest as well. And 4K/Ultra HD was also a major topic of conversation, according to the CEO.

On the 12 volt side, the attendees made Apple's Carplay "a big topic of discussion," as well as what Pioneer is offering.

The event also featured prizes. A drawing was held to win a Polaris UTV, and Steve Brawner of Pro Audio Georgia was the winner.

Following the event, Elster said he plans to continue hosting occasional roundtables for dealers, as the ones at the event were about "trying to get me to understand their business better, and help me make them more money." Audio America has 16 sales people internally, and 16 more throughout the territory.

See AudioAmerica's website for more on their offerings.
http://audioamerica.com